Cooly G - Magnetic

Cooly G - Magnetic
Cooly G, AKA Merissa Campbell, makes a type of soul and R&B best experienced alone in the fetal position. It can trigger existential yearnings you didn't know you had, yet it's fully tied to the club. Magnetic reminds us of this versatility with four tracks that each showcase a different side to her sound.

"Distorted," one of the EP's two instrumentals, is smoothly competent house and UK funky with blaring synths and a fat bassline. "Grimm" nods to sparse halfstep grime, à la Ruff Sqwad, and is tough and full of stepper's swagger. If "Hard" represents Campbell's classic breeziness, it does so among a soft-hard combo of militant snares and reverb-soaked "ooohs" and "aaahhhs." But her star shines brightest when she's at her most vulnerable. With vocals reduced to mere hums and delay, Campbell evokes plenty of feeling in "Magnetic." With only the faintest minimal percussion tics, it's skeletal but full of soul.